


Strangers in the Night

by AyLeeCambell



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:48:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28351956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AyLeeCambell/pseuds/AyLeeCambell
Summary: Veronica is breaking up with her boyfriend in a bar when a stranger comes to her defense.
Relationships: Jughead Jones/Veronica Lodge
Comments: 9
Kudos: 43





	Strangers in the Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [half_ok](https://archiveofourown.org/users/half_ok/gifts).



> Secret Santa Fic!
> 
> Completely AU  
> jeronicasecretsanta20 @ jeronicanation  
> This SS gift is for: @half-ok  
> I hope you enjoy your gift!!  
> This has not been beta'd, so all mistakes are mine and if you let me know (nicely please) I will try to fix them. Thanks!

Veronica gets the text as soon as Chad gets up to go to the bathroom. 

Cheryl: I'm sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news. Normally I'd tell you in person but I feel like you need to know now rather than later. Brace yourself, a picture is worth a thousand words:

[Picture of Chad and Jessica together, the two in the middle of having sex.]

Cheryl: This was from this morning while you were at yoga.

Veronica: That fucking bastard. 

Cheryl: Let me know if you need help hiding the body.

Veronica: Will do girl. 

When Chad gets back from the bathroom Veronica is sitting calmly at the table, tapping her nails along with the beat from the music playing overhead. 

“Hey Babe, I was thinking-” He starts, sliding back into the booth.

Veronica holds up a hand, cutting off his words. Her smile is sharp as she pulls her phone out and shows him the picture she received from Cheryl. 

“We’re done.” She says and stands up with her purse in her hand.

“Babe-” Chad starts and Veronica interrupts again.

“You fucked my roommate, in my apartment, this morning while I was at yoga. Luckily for me and unluckily for you Cheryl didn’t feel up to it this morning so she stayed home. How stupid are you that didn’t think I would eventually find out?” Veronica demands.

“It was only this once!” Chad tries to defend but she waves it away. 

“I don’t care. We are done and I want nothing to do with you.” Veronica says, stepping away from the table before turning and walking away. She’ll call an uber once she gets outside. 

Chad follows behind her. 

"Ronnie it was a mistake! If you'd just let me explain-" Chad whines behind her and Veronica spins around on her heels so she can look at him.

"Explain what? A mistake? A mistake is maybe a kiss. You don’t fuck someone by mistake. What do you think you can possibly say right now that will make me forgive you or forget what you did?" Veronica demands, looking him in the eyes.

Chad sputters, obviously trying to think of something to say but not able to come up with an argument he thinks will work. 

Veronica scoffs and rolls her eyes as she twirls around to strut angrily away. 

"Wait no, Veronica." Chad finally finds his voice and goes after her. When he's close enough he grabs her arm and tugs her back towards him. “Just listen to me!” He demands angrily.

She rips her arm out of his grasp. "Don't touch me!"

She’s about two seconds from punching him in the face for touching her when someone comes to her defense.

"Hey!" A male voice snaps from behind her and for a moment all Veronica can see is black and green leather. 

A stranger has just put himself in between her and Chad.

Since she's currently staring at his back all she knows about him is that he's part of a motorcycle gang called the Serpents, has raven black hair (that looks messy but good), he's taller than her even in her 4 inch heels, and he really seems to have a problem with Chad putting his hands on her.

All in all, so far she likes what she's seeing.

Still, she has never been a damsel in distress and she isn't starting now. 

Veronica takes a step to the side so she's no longer behind him but beside him instead. From there she watches the show, ready to step in if she needs to. 

"Didn't anyone ever teach you to never put your hands on a woman?" Jughead demands angrily, getting into Chad’s face.

He doesn’t know much about the situation, but he knows this guy looks like a douche and the woman had made it very clear she didn't want anything to do with him.

That's really all he needed to know to step in.

Chad sneers. “Stay out of this loser, it doesn’t concern you!” 

“I’m making it my concern. You want people to stay out of your business? Then don’t have your fights in public places where people can teach you some proper manners.” Jughead snaps.

“This is between Veronica and I, stay out of it.” Chad demands. 

Jughead turns to look at Veronica and green eyes meet black eyes. 

“Do you want to talk to him?” He asks her.

“No. I think I’ve made it clear I want nothing more to do with him. He seems to have a problem understanding basic reasoning.” Veronica tells him while smirking.

Jughead grins at her. “I can see why that might be a problem.”

Veronica can’t help but smile back at him.

“Hey!” Chad interrupts them. “Are you two flirting right now? Really? Right in front of me?” 

Veronica rolls her eyes and looks at him. “We just broke up because you fucked my roommate on my kitchen counter. I can do whatever the fuck I want and yes, that means I am flirting in front of you right now.”

“Shit.” Jughead mutters. “You really fucked up.” He says looking at Chad. 

“Shut up.” Chad tells Jughead, who shrugs and shakes his head, then Chad looks back at Veronica. “Ronnie-” He tries again.

Veronica snorts. “Just stop. There is literally nothing you can say to make this situation better. Just walk away.” 

Chad looks at Jughead. “I know what will make me feel better.” 

Jughead shakes his head. “Don’t be stupid.” He knows exactly what’s going to happen which makes dodging the punch Chad throws at him pretty easy. 

“Seriously?” Veronica asks no one as she backs up. She knows better than to get between two guys in a bar fight. 

Besides, Chad has never been a good fighter. She’d bet on the biker guy any day before she bet on Chad winning. 

It takes Jughead exactly 30 seconds to end the fight by punching Chad in the face. 

\---

After the bar kicks Chad out, Veronica buys Jughead and his friends, Fangs, Sweet Pea, and Toni drinks to apologize for the drama. 

Jughead and Veronica are sitting next to each other in the curved booth, her thigh lined up against his, and she’s telling them the entire sordid tale of her relationship with Chad and taking their teasing with a shrug and a shot of rum. 

“His name was Chad! How did you not know he was a douche?” Sweet Pea teases. 

“Hey now! He was charming when we met! Besides, can any of you really be judging names? Jughead, Fangs, Sweet Pea? Are those your real names by the way?” 

“You’ll have to find out.” Toni teases. “We don’t just tell our secrets to strangers.” 

“Not even strangers that buy your drinks?” Veronica teases back. 

“Not even. You gotta earn it.” Fangs tells her with a smile.

“Right, well, we need more shots then.” Veronica says with a returning smile as she catches their server’s eye so she can order another round. 

\---

Jughead isn't sure how it happened exactly but when the group leaves the bar, Veronica is riding on the back of his bike. 

They’re all walking out of the bar a little tipsy but no one was drunk and they made sure to space out the drinking with food and water. They all knew better then to ride a motorcycle drunk. 

He’s holding Veronica’s hand as he leads her outside. He doesn’t know when they started holding hands or who reached for the other first, he just knows they’ve been doing it for hours now and neither one of them have wanted to let go. 

He’s been keeping an eye on her and other than the two shots of rum earlier she’s been drinking water. So he knows that she’s not holding his hand to help keep her balance. She hasn’t wavered a bit even in those heels. 

There’s a pang of disappointment that after they leave tonight he’ll most likely never see her again. 

"I can drop you off somewhere. Your apartment or at a friend's place?" Jughead offers Veronica as Sweet Pea, Fangs, and Toni split off to get on their bikes and head back to their campground for the night.

"I share an apartment with Jessica and Cheryl. The absolute last place I want to be right now is there until Cheryl kicks Jessica out and has a deep clean done on our apartment." Veronica tells him as she stands next to him and watches the others leave. 

He doesn’t know why he even suggests it, but when she turns to look at him and she steps closer to him, invading the little space he had left, it just pops out of his mouth.

"You can come with us?" He offers. "We're going to a rally a few states over. We'll be coming back through here in about two weeks. If you really want to get away for a bit." 

Veronica stares at him for a moment, completely silent and its enough to make his heart race and for him to feel stupid.

Why the hell is he offering for her to come with? They're strangers. She's probably wondering if he's crazy or a murderer or something. 

He’s cursing himself in his head and opens his his mouth to tell her to forget it but then she grins and he's struck speechless.

"Let's do it." Veronica says with a little laugh, wrapping her arms around his neck. 

“What?” He can’t help but question it. Is she really going to come with him?

“Let’s do it. I’m not ready for this to end yet.” She tells him.

It's crazy and impulsive and something inside her is telling her she's insane but a bigger part of her is telling her she'll regret it if she doesn't go.

He almost wants to question her or himself. They’re both acting crazy but he doesn’t want her to change her mind. So instead he smiles and leans down and kisses her on the forehead before he grabs her hand again and leads her over to his bike. 

“Get on Princess, and hold tight.” He tells her as he straddles his bike and hands her a helmet to put on. 

Veronica puts the helmet on and then she gets on after him, her front plastered to his back and her arms wrapped snugly around his waist.

“Let’s go Torombolo. Take me away.” Veronica says leaning closer against him so her lips graze his ear as she talks. 

Jughead breathes out a shuttering sigh at the feel of her against him and at her breath against his ear before gripping the handlebars and grinning. After a pause to collect himself, he starts the engine and pulls away from the curb.


End file.
